Panama 10 December, 2025. At the Carmen Cedeño Auditorium of the City of the Arts, the Ministry of Culture of Panama received high regional cultural authorities, representatives of international agencies and delegations from countries members of SICA, during a working session organized by the Central American Educational and Cultural Coordination (CECC- SICA).

The meeting brought together ministers, deputy ministers and regional delegations as well as representatives of the UNESCO and the Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean (CAF) to put forward two key announcements for the cultural strengthening of the region: the launch of the Regional Artist's Policy at 2030 and the official presentation of the CAF Festival "Voices for Our Region: Culture That Moves The World."

Among the figures were Alejandra Claros, General Secretary of CAF, Gloria María Lescano, technical coordinator of the new Regional Policy of the Artist, the Coordinator of Cultural Management of the CECC- SICA, Erick Doradea and Hurtado- the Chargé d'affaires of the Cultural Sector of the Regional Office of the UNESCO for Central America, Colombia and Mexico, Enrique López and Cultural Workers.

The day began with a tour of the City of the Arts. During the day, the CAF Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean officially announced that, as part of the International Economic Forum Latin America and the Caribbean 2026, organized from January 27 to 30, Panama will be the inaugural headquarters of the Vocias por Nuestra Región: Culture that moves the world, with its launch scheduled for January 27, 2026.

The festival will open up its agenda with a display dedicated to regional talent and culture as a transformative force. It will include creative fairs, dialogues, innovation forums and spaces to explore music, literature, original and contemporary art, sustainable design, cultural infrastructure, digital platforms and public policies.

"Culture is a transformative force that connects us, identifies and projects us to the future. With Voices for Our Region, we wish to open up new opportunities for our creators and to show that Latin American and Caribbean talent does not only inspire but also promotes economies, strengthens communities and contributes to the sustainable development of the whole region," said Alejandra Claros, General Secretary of CAF.

The session also included representatives from UNESCO and CECC-SICA, who emphasized the strategic role of culture in the processes of integration, social resilience and collective identity and an official greeting from the Assistant Director General of Culture, Ernesto Ottone, from the UNESCO, and reaffirmed the technical accompaniment to the region.

The Cultural Management Coordinator at CECC-SICA, Erick Doradea, emphasized the importance of articulate policies that guarantee cultural rights and enabling environments for art and culture workers.

One of the challenges of the meeting was the presentation of the Regional Policy of the Artist and Cultural Workers, a document prepared under the technical co-ordination of Gloria Lezcano, whose policy lays down a common Roadmap to promote employment recognition, professionalism, cultural mobility, social protection and sustainable development of the art sector in the countries of SICA up to 2030.

The Minister of Culture of Panama, María Eugenia Herrera, expressed his gratitude for the presence of delegations and recognized that "for far too long, the work of artists, creators and cultural workers, true ambassadors of Panamanian identity, has been marked by information, instability and lack of guarantees. That Policy is an integral tool and collective response to that reality. It's our promise to secure the full exercise of the social, employment and economic rights of those who inspire and represent us."